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This book describes the substantial progress recently made in the development of micro and nanorobotic systems, utilizing magnetic, optical, acoustic, electrical, and other actuation fields. It covers several areas of micro and nanorobotics including robotics, materials science, and biomedical engineering. Field-Driven Micro and Nanorobots for Biology and Medicine provides readers with fundamental physics at the micro and nano scales, state-of-the-art technical advances in field-driven micro and nanorobots, and applications in biological and biomedical disciplines.

This book presents a comprehensive review of various aspects of the novel and rapidly developing field of active matter, which encompasses a wide variety of self-organized self-driven energy-consuming media or agents. Most naturally occurring examples are of biological origin, spanning all scales from intracellular structures to swimming and crawling cells and microorganisms, to living tissues, bacterial colonies and flocks of birds. But the field also encompasses artificial systems, from colloids to soft robots. Intrinsically out of equilibrium and free of constraints of time-reversal symmetry, such systems display a range of surprising and unusual behaviors.​ In this book, the author emphasizes connections between fluid-mechanical, material, biological and technological aspects of active matter. He employs a minimum of mathematical tools, ensuring that the presentation is accessible to a wider scientific community. Richly illustrated, it gives the reader a clear picture of this fascinating field, its diverse phenomena and its open questions.

In this book, the authors use molecular dynamics simulations to conduct a comprehensive study of the compression/superheating limit and phase transition of 2D (monolayer, bilayer, and trilayer) water/ice constrained in graphene nanocapillaries. When subjected to nanoscale confinement and under ultrahigh pressure, water and ice behave quite differently than their bulk counterparts, partly because the van der Waals pressure can spark a water-to-ice transformation, known as the metastability limit of two-dimensional (2D) liquids. From a mechanical standpoint, this liquid-to-solid transformation characterizes the compression limit (or metastability limit) of 2D water. The findings presented here could help us to better understand the phase behavior of 2D confined water/ice.

With the prospect of revolutionizing specific technologies, this book highlights the most exciting and impactful current research in the fields of cellulose-based superabsorbent hydrogels with their smart applications. The book assembles the newest synthetic routes, characterization methods, and applications in the emergent area. Leading experts in the field have contributed chapters representative of their most recent research results, shedding light on the enormous potential of this field and thoroughly presenting cellulose-based hydrogel functioning materials. The book is intended for the polymer chemists, academic and industrial scientists and engineers, pharmaceutical and biomedical scientists and agricultural engineers engaged in research and development on absorbency, absorbent products and superabsorbent hydrogels. It can also be supportive for undergraduate and graduate students.

This book presents a unique fusion of two different research topics. One is related to the traditional mathematical problem of chases and escapes. The problem mainly deals with a situation where a chaser pursues an evader to analyze their trajectories and capture time. It dates back more than 300 years and has developed in various directions such as differential games. The other topic is the recently developing field of collective behavior, which investigates origins and properties of emergent behavior in groups of self-driving units. Applications include schools of fish, flocks of birds, and traffic jams. This book first reviews representative topics, both old and new, from these two areas. Then it presents the combined research topic of'group chase and escape', recently proposed by the authors. Although the combination is simple and straightforward, the book describes the emergence of rather intricate behavior, provoking the interest of readers for further developments and applications of related topics.

This textbook provides a fast-track pathway to numerical implementation of phase-field modeling—a relatively new paradigm that has become the method of choice for modeling and simulation of microstructure evolution in materials. It serves as a cookbook for the phase-field method by presenting a collection of codes that act as foundations and templates for developing other models with more complexity. Programming Phase-Field Modeling uses the Matlab/Octave programming package, simpler and more compact than other high-level programming languages, providing ease of use to the widest audience. Particular attention is devoted to the computational efficiency and clarity during development of the codes, which allows the reader to easily make the connection between the mathematical formulism and the numerical implementation of phase-field models. The background materials provided in each case study also provide a forum for undergraduate level modeling-simulations courses as part of their curriculum.

This volume describes the application of fluorescence spectroscopy in polymer research. The first chapters outline the basic principles of the conformational and dynamic behavior of polymers and review the problems of polymer self-assembly. Subsequent chapters introduce the theoretical principles of advanced fluorescence methods and typical examples of their application in polymer science. The book closes with several reviews of various fluorescence applications for studying specific aspects of polymer-solution behavior. It is a useful resource for polymer scientists and experts in fluorescence spectroscopy alike, facilitating their communication and cooperation.

This book presents the most recent mathematical approaches to the growing research area of networks, oscillations, and collective motions in the context of biological systems. Bringing together the results of multiple studies of different biological systems, this book sheds light on the relations among these research themes. Included in this book are the following topics: feedback systems with time delay and threshold of sensing (dead zone), robustness of biological networks from the point of view of dynamical systems, the hardware-oriented neuron modeling approach, a universal mechanism governing the entrainment limit under weak forcing, the robustness mechanism of open complex systems, situation-dependent switching of the cues primarily relied on by foraging ants, and group chase and escape.Research on different biological systems is presented together, not separated by specializations or by model systems. Therefore, the book provides diverse perspectives at the forefront of current mathematical research on biological systems, especially focused on networks, oscillations, and collective motions.This work is aimed at advanced undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral students, as well as scientists and engineers. It will also be of great use for professionals in industries and service sectors owing to the applicability of topics such as networks and synchronizations.

This book contains invited lectures and selected contributions presented at the Enzo Levi and XIX Annual Meeting of the Fluid Dynamic Division of the Mexican Physical Society in 2013. It is aimed at fourth year undergraduate and graduate students, and scientists in the fields of physics, engineering and chemistry who are interested in fluid dynamics from an experimental and theoretical point of view. The invited lectures are introductory and avoid the use of complicated mathematics. The fluid dynamics applications include multiphase flow, convection, diffusion, heat transfer, rheology, granular material, viscous flow, porous media flow, geophysics and astrophysics. The material contained in the book includes recent advances in experimental and theoretical fluid dynamics and is suitable for both teaching and research.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the First HPCLATAM - CLCAR Joint Latin American High Performance Computing Conference, CARLA 2014, held in Valparaiso, Chile, in October 2014. The 17 revised full papers and the one paper presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 42 submissions. The papers are organized in topical sections on grid and cloud computing; HPC architectures and tools; parallel programming; scientific computing.

This book offers a valuable reference source to graduate and post graduate students, engineering students, research scholars polymer engineers from industry. The book provides the reader with current developments of theoretical models describing the thermodynamics polyelectrolytes as well as experimental findings. A particular emphasis is put on the rheological description of polyelectrolyte solutions and hydrogels.

NMR of Ordered Liquids gives a unique overview of the scope and limitations of the NMR of oriented liquids, based on contributions from acknowledged experts in the field. The book consists of four sections: -detailed general introduction which covers the basic principles and sophisticated experimental techniques; -wide variety of applications ranging from NMR studies of small atoms and molecules in anisotropic liquids to the utilization of residual dipolar couplings for structure determination of biological molecules; -summary of the sophisticated theoretical treatments, computer simulations, and phenomenological models for anisotropic intermolecular interactions that are widely used in the analysis of experimental results; -overview of the dynamical aspects and relaxation processes relevant for orientationally ordered molecules.

Dieser Buchtitel ist Teil des Digitalisierungsprojekts Springer Book Archives mit Publikationen, die seit den Anfängen des Verlags von 1842 erschienen sind. Der Verlag stellt mit diesem Archiv Quellen für die historische wie auch die disziplingeschichtliche Forschung zur Verfügung, die jeweils im historischen Kontext betrachtet werden müssen. Dieser Titel erschien in der Zeit vor 1945 und wird daher in seiner zeittypischen politisch-ideologischen Ausrichtung vom Verlag nicht beworben.

The Advanced Study Institute Ice Physics in the Natural and Endangered Environ­ ment was held at Acquafredda di Maratea, Italy, from September 7 to 19, 1997. The ASI was designed to study the broad range of ice science and technology, and it brought together an appropriately interdisciplinary group of lecturers and students to study the many facets of the subject. The talks and poster presentations explored how basic molecular physics of ice have important environmental consequences, and, con­ versely, how natural phenomena present new questions for fundamental study. The of lectures discusses these linkages, in order that overall unity of following sunimary the subject and this volume can be perceived. Not all of the lecturers and participants were able to contribute a written piece, but their active involvement was crucial to the success of the Institute and thereby influenced the content of the volume. We began the Institute by retracing the history of the search for a microscopic un­ derstanding of melting. Our motivation was straightforward. Nearly every phenome­ non involving ice in the environment is influenced by the change of phase from solid to liquid or vice-versa. Hence, a sufficiently deep physical picture of the melting tran­ sition enriches our appreciation of a vast array of geophysical and technical problems.

Dieser Buchtitel ist Teil des Digitalisierungsprojekts Springer Book Archives mit Publikationen, die seit den Anfängen des Verlags von 1842 erschienen sind. Der Verlag stellt mit diesem Archiv Quellen für die historische wie auch die disziplingeschichtliche Forschung zur Verfügung, die jeweils im historischen Kontext betrachtet werden müssen. Dieser Titel erschien in der Zeit vor 1945 und wird daher in seiner zeittypischen politisch-ideologischen Ausrichtung vom Verlag nicht beworben.

The methods developed to deal with the computational aspects of physi­ cal problems are useful in an increasing number of situations, from chem­ istry, biology and geology to engineering, communications and economics. In fact, computational physics has evolved into a trans-disciplinary field now concerned with the creative use of computers in scientific research. More­ over, computational methods often help students to develop a deeper under­ standing of key concepts, and enhance their problem-solving abilities. There­ fore, computational physics is recognized as having an important educational value, and educators face the task of outlining appropriate curricula to take advantage of these unique features. This is an important motivation for the publication of the contents of the Seminar on Computational Physics which is held in Granada every two years. The seminar aims at bringing together small groups of students and active researchers on different aspects of computational physics. It is part of the doctoral programme of the University of Granada. The proceedings of the previous editions were published as II Granada Lectures in Computational Physics (World Scientific, Singapore 1993) and Third Granada Lectures in Computational Physics (Lecture Notes in Physics, vol. 448, Springer, Berlin 1995) by the same editors. The present book contains the invited lecture notes and a very brief account of contributions by participants at the 4th Granada Seminar on Computational Physics (Granada, Spain, 9-14 September 1996).

Die Zielrichtung des Buches ist identisch mit dem Ziel des Gesenkschmiedebetriebs: Wirtschaftliche Fertigung des beanspruchungsgerecht gestalteten und soweit wie möglich einbaufertigen Gesenkschmiedestücks bei optimaler Nutzung der Werkstoffeigenschaften.

Since the publication of the first edition of The Physics of Glassy Polymers there have been substantial developments in both the theory and application of polymer physics, and many new materials have been introduced. Furthermore, in this large and growing field of knowledge, glassy polymers are of particular interest because of their homogeneous structure, which is fundamentally simpler than that of crystalline or reinforced materials. This new edition covers all these developments, including the emergence of the polymer molecule with its multiplicity of structure and conformations as the major factor controlling the properties of glassy polymers, using the combined knowledge of a distinguished team of contributors. With an introductory chapter covering the established science in the subject are and summarising concepts assumed in the later chapters, this fully revised and updated second edition is an essential work of reference for those involved in the field.

The field of non-crystalline materials has seen the emergence of many challeng­ ing problems during its long history. In recent years, the interest in polymeric and biological disordered matter has stimulated new activities which in turn have enlarged the organic and inorganic glass community. The current research fields and recent progress have extended our knowledge of the rich phenomenol­ ogy of glassy systems, where the role of disorder is fundamental for the underlying microscopic dynamics. In addition, despite the lack of a unified theory, many interesting theoretical models have recently evolved. The present volume offers the reader a collection of topics representing the current state in the understanding of disorder effects as well as a survey of the basic problems and phenomena involved. The task of compiling a book devoted to disordered systems has benefited much from a seminar organized by the W.-E. Heraeus Foundation in Bad Honnef in April 1992, where we had the opportunity to discuss the project with most of the authors. Here we wish to thank the Heraeus Foundation for their support, and the authors and Springer-Verlag, especially Dr. Marion Hertel, for the pleasant cooperation.

This volume comprises the proceedings of a NATO Advanced Study In­ stitute held at Geilo, Norway, April 6 -16 1999. The ASI was the fifteenth in a series held biannually on topics related to cooperative phenomena and phase transitions, in this case applied to soft condensed matter and its configurations, dynamics and functionality. It addressed the current experimental and theoretical knowledge of the physical properties of soft condensed matter such as polymers, gels, complex fluids, colloids, granular materials and biomaterials. The main purpose of the lectures was to obtain basic understanding of important aspects in relating molecular configurations and dynamics to macroscopic properties and biological functionality. To our knowledge, the term Soft Condensed Matter was actually coined and used for the first time in 1989 at Geilo and some selected topics of soft matter were also given at Geilo in 1991, 1993 and 1995. A return to this subject 10 years after its instigation thus allowed a fresh look and a possibility for defining new directions for research.

That residues of pesticide and other'foreign'chemicals in food­ stuffs are of concern to everyone everywhere is amply attested by the reception accorded previous volumes of'Residue Reviews'and by the gratifying enthusiasm, sincerity, and efforts shown by all the in­ dividuals from whom manuscripts have been solicited. Despite much propaganda to the contrary, there can never be any serious question that pest-control chemicals and food-additive chemicals are essential to adequate food production, manufacture, marketing, and storage, yet without continuing surveillance and intelligent control some of those that persist in our foodstuffs could at times conceivably endanger the public health. Ensuring safety-in-use of these many chemicals is a dynamic challenge, for established ones are continually being dis­ placed by newly developed ones more acceptable to food technologists, pharmacologists, taxicologists, and changing pest-control requirements in progressive food-producing economies. These matters are of genuine concern to increasing numbers of governmental agencies and legislative bodies around the world, for some of these chemicals have resulted in a few mishaps from improper use. Adequate safety-in-use evaluations of any of these chemicals per­ sisting into our foodstuffs are not simple matters, and they incorporate the considered judgments of many individuals highly trained in a variety of complex biological, chemical, food technological, medical, pharmacological, and toxicological disciplines.

Several state-of-the-art applications of molten salts are presented, such as metal-molten salt systems, room temperature glass formation, and room temperature melts. Several recent examples of applications highlight the importance of molten salts in various industries (batteries, pyrochemical reprocessing of nuclear fuel, synthesis and catalysis). The basic concepts of the structure, dynamics, electrochemistry, interfacial and thermodynamic properties are detailed and relevant experimental methods described. Such fundamental concepts are essential for an in-depth understanding of the physicochemical properties of molten salts in general, including metal-molten salts, glass forming and low temperature melts. Experimental methods for investigating structural, dynamical, electrochemical thermodynamical and interfacial properties are detailed, as also are techniques for data collection and analysis. Scientists, engineers and technologists will find the volume a valuable reference source covering a wide spectrum of fundamental concepts and modern technologies.

Predicted long ago to be present on the surface of planetary bodies by theoreticians and recently shown by interplanetary spacecraft and ground- based instruments to be ubiquitous in the Solar System, ices in a broad sense have become an extremely important subject in planetary research. Ices found on objects formed in the remote parts of the Solar System contain a message about the composition and mode of formation of our planetary system. There are also objects that contain icy materials that bear signatures of past events on a geological timescale. Their study is one of the best means of inquiring about the origins, accessing the past and anticipating the future of our Solar System. The reviews in this book collect together a series of papers covering the physics and chemistry of ices, as well as the geology of icy surfaces. They present an extensive summary of their chemical and physical properties relevant to planetary astronomy. They also provide an overview of planetary bodies that contain ices and the outstanding problems of the field. Audience: The book is intended to become a reference for researchers and graduate students. It is accessible to senior graduate students with a background in planetary science.

This book is the closing report of the national priority program Nature-Inspired Fluid Mechanics (Schwerpunktprogramm SPP 1207: Strömungsbeeinflussung in der Natur und Technik). Nature-inspired fluid mechanics is one subset of biomimetics, a discipline which has received increased attention over the last decade, with numerous faculties and degree courses devoted solely to exploring ‘nature as a model'for engineering applications. To save locomotion energy, evolution has optimized the design of animals such that friction loss is minimized. In addition to many morphological adaptations, animals that are often exposed to water or air currents have developed special behaviors that allow them to use the energy contained in air or water fluctuations for energy savings. Such flow manipulation and control is not only important for many animals, but also for many engineering applications. Since living beings have been optimized by several million years of evolution it is very likely that many engineering disciplines can profit from the study of systems found in nature. Curiously, there has been little serious cross-disciplinary work and information exchange on the topic of fluid dynamics and flow control and this was the initial motivation to establish this national priority program.

Observation, Prediction and Simulation of Phase Transitions in Complex Fluids presents an overview of the phase transitions that occur in a variety of soft-matter systems: colloidal suspensions of spherical or rod-like particles and their mixtures, directed polymers and polymer blends, colloid--polymer mixtures, and liquid-forming mesogens. This modern and fascinating branch of condensed matter physics is presented from three complementary viewpoints. The first section, written by experimentalists, emphasises the observation of basic phenomena (by light scattering, for example). The second section, written by theoreticians, focuses on the necessary theoretical tools (density functional theory, path integrals, free energy expansions). The third section is devoted to the results of modern simulation techniques (Gibbs ensemble, free energy calculations, configurational bias Monte Carlo). The interplay between the disciplines is clearly illustrated. For all those interested in modern research in equilibrium statistical mechanics.

This dissertation contributes to the understanding of fundamental issues in the highly interdisciplinary field of colloidal science. Beyond colloid science, the system also serves as a model for studying interactions in biological matter. This work quantitatively investigated the scaling laws of the characteristic lengths of the structuring of colloidal dispersions and tested the generality of these laws, thereby explaining and resolving some long-standing contradictions in literature. It revealed the effect of confinement on the structuring, independently of specific properties of the confining interfaces. In addition, it resolved the influence of roughness and charge of the confining interfaces on the structuring and as well providing a method to measure the effect of surface deformability on colloidal structuring.

This volume is based on lectures given at the NATO-Advanced Study Institute on Structure and Dynamics of Polymer and Colloid Systems held in Les Houches, France from September 14-24, 1999. The meeting arose from a perceived need to bring together scientists studying the polymer and colloid fields. Although these fields are intertwined and share many techniques (e. g., light, neutron and x-ray scattering), it is remarkable how little the approaches and concepts used by the one field penetrate the other. For instance, the theory of spherical colloids is very highly developed and many of the concepts developed for these systems can be extended to those with non-spherical morphology, such as solutions of rigid rod polymers. In addition, mixtures of polymers and colloids, both in the bulk and at interfaces, are the basis for many industrial products. Methods are now rapidly being developed for understanding the structure and dynamics in polymer/colloid mixtures at the molecular level, but the point of view of the colloid scientist is often rather different from that of the polymer scientist. The NATO-ASI brought together polymer and colloid scientists, including many young researchers, who presented and discussed recent developments in these fields and the possibilities for cross-fertilization This volume contains articles on a wide variety of topics at the research forefront of the polymer and colloid fields by some of the world's foremost experts at a level accessible to graduate students, post-docs and researchers.

The theory of simple and complex fluids has made considerable recent progress, due to the emergence of new concepts and theoretical tools, and also to the availability of a large body of new experimental data on increas­ ingly complex systems, as well as far-reaching methodological developments in numerical simulations. This AS! aimed at providing a comprehensive overview of the most significant theoretical developments, supplemented by a few presentations of cutting-edge simulation and experimental work. The impact of the Institute in the overall landscape of Statistical Mechanics received an important recognition with its inclusion in the list of satellite events of STATPHYS20, the triennal international conference on Statistical Physics held in Paris in July 1998. These Proceedings contain the texts of the 13 Lecture Courses and 9 Invited Seminars delivered at Patti. Two clear trends emerge from these Proceedings: first, the diversity of new and unexpected theoretical results relating to classic models of liq­ uids, which have recently been subjected to fresh scrutiny; and secondly the parallel emergence of new concepts, models and methods, aimed at investigating complex fluids and phenomena, like the phase behaviour of fluids in pores, macromolecular assemblies, and the glass transition. Many of the new tools have their roots in traditional liquid state theory, and, in conjunction with fresh input from related fields, allow it wider applicability.

That residues of pesticide and other'foreign'chemicals in foodstuffs are of concern to everyone everywhere is amply attested by the reception accorded previous volumes of'Residue Reviews'and by the gratifying en­ thusiasm, sincerity, and efforts shown by all the individuals from whom manuscripts have been solicited. Despite much propaganda to the contrary, there can never be any serious question that pest-control chemicals and food­ additive chemicals are essential to adequate food production, manufacture, marketing, and storage, yet without continuing surveillance and intelligent control some of those thalt persist in our foodstuffs could at times conceivably endanger the public health. Ensuring safety-in-use of these many chemicals is a dynamic challenge, for established ones are continually being displaced by newly developed ones more acceptable to food technologists, pharma­ cologists, toxicologists, and changing pest-control requirements in progressive food-producing economies. These matters are also of genuine concern to increasing numbers of governmental agencies and legislative bodies around the world, for some of these chemicals have resulted in a few mishaps from improper use. Adequate safety-in-use evaluations of any of these chemicals persisting into our food­ stuffs are not simple matters, and they incorporate the considered judgments of many individuals highly trained in a variety of complex biological, chemi­ cal, food technological, medical, pharmacological, and toxicological disciplines.

Recent studies on two-dimensional systems have led to new insights into the fascinating interplay between physical properties and dimensionality. Many of these ideas have emerged from work on electrons bound to the surface of a weakly polarizable substrate such as liquid helium or solid hydrogen. The research on this subject continues to be at the forefront of modern condensed matter physics because of its fundamental simplicity as well as its connection to technologically useful devices. This book is the first comprehensive overview of experimental and theoretical research in this exciting field. It is intended to provide a coherent introduction for graduate students and non-experts, while at the same time serving as a reference source for active researchers in the field. The chapters are written by individuals who made significant contributions and cover a variety of specialized topics. These include the origin of the surface states, tunneling and magneto-tunneling out of these states, the phase diagram, collective excitations, transport and magneto-transport.

-Polyelectrolyte Stars and Cylindrical Brushes By Y. Xu, F. Plamper, M. Ballauff, and A. H. E. Müller -Various Aspects of the Interfacial Self-Assembly of Nanoparticles By N. Popp, S. Kutuzov, A. Böker -Holographic Gratings and Data Storage in Azobenzene-Containing Block Copolymers and Molecular Glasses By H. Audorff, K. Kreger, R. Walker, D. Haarer, L. Kador, and H.-W. Schmidt -Donor–Acceptor Block Copolymers with Nanoscale Morphology for Photovoltaic Applications By M. Sommer, S. Huettner, and M. Thelakkat -Recent Advances in the Improvement of Polymer Electret Films By D. P. Erhard, D. Lovera, C. von Salis-Soglio, R. Giesa, V. Altstädt, and H.-W. Schmidt

Channels of nanotubular dimensions exist in a variety of materials (examples are carbon nanotubes and the nanotubular channels of zeolites and zeotypes) and show promise for numerous applications due to their unique properties. One of their most important properties is their capacity to adsorb molecules and these may exist in a variety of phases.'Adsorption and Phase Behaviour in Nanochannels and Nanotubes'provides an excellent review of recent and current work on adsorption on nanometerials. It is an impressive collection of papers dealing with the adsorption and phase behaviour in nanoporous materials from both experimental and theoretical perspectives.'Adsorption and Phase Behaviour in Nanochannels and Nanotubes'focuses on carbon nanotubes as well as zeolites and related materials.

From Polymers to Colloids: Engineering the Dynamic Properties of Hairy Particles, by D. Vlassopoulos and G. Fytas•Nonlinear Rheological Properties of Dense Colloidal Dispersions Close to a Glass Transition Under Steady Shear, by M. Fuchs•Micromechanics of Soft Particle Glasses, by R. T. Bonnecaze and M. Cloitre•Quantitative Imaging of Concentrated Suspensions Under Flow, by L. Isa, R. Besseling, A. B. Schofield and W. C. K. Poon•Soft and Wet Materials: From Hydrogels to Biotissues, by J. P. Gong and Y. Osada

Even though there is no generally accepted definition of nanotechnologies to be defined as distinct discipline there is an emerging consensus that their advent and development is a growing in importance factor of the contemporary and future technological civilization. One of these most fundamental issues we are confronted with is the compatibility with life itself. From single cell organisms to humans, carbon is a key building block of all molecular structures of life. In contrast the man created electronic industry to build on other elements, of which silicon is the most common. Both carbon and silicon create molecular chains, although different in their internal structure. All life is built from carbon-based chains. As long as the man built technological products do not directly interfere with the physiology of life the associated risks from them are relatively easy to identify. They are primarily in the environmental pollution and the possibility of upsetting the natural balance of biocoenosis, on a planetary scale. The basic life functions are still not directly subverted. We can use TV, computers, drive cars and use other technological utilities without fear of direct interference with our cellular functions. This is in particular because all these technological utilities are many orders of magnitude larger than typical scales of biological activity. Most of biological activity, from fermentative catalysis to DNA replication takes place on nanoscale. The situation is radically different when the technological goals are building nanoscale size products. All biological processes take place on nanoscale.

In recent years, scientists have applied the principles of complex systems science to increasingly diverse fields. The results have been nothing short of remarkable: their novel approaches have provided answers to long-standing questions in biology, ecology, physics, engineering, computer science, economics, psychology and sociology.'Unifying Themes in Complex Systems'is a well established series of carefully edited conference proceedings that serve the purpose of documenting and archiving the progress of cross-fertilization in this field. About NECSI: For over 10 years, The New England Complex Systems Institute (NECSI) has been instrumental in the development of complex systems science and its applications. NECSI conducts research, education, knowledge dissemination, and community development around the world for the promotion of the study of complex systems and its application for the betterment of society. NECSI hosts the International Conference on Complex Systems and publishes the NECSI Book Series in conjunction with Springer Publishers.

Modern Magnetic Resonance provides a unique and comprehensive resource on up-to-date uses and applications of magnetic resonance techniques in the sciences, including chemistry, biology, materials, food, medicine, pharmaceuticals and marine sciences. The widespread appeal of MMR methods for revealing information at the molecular and microscopic levels is noted and examples are provided from the chemical and other sciences. Until now, there has been no single publication that covers all the areas encompassed by'Modern Magnetic Resonance', by bringing together the various techniques and their applications in many scientific areas, the internationally renowned Editors have created a resource of broad appeal to the scientific community. The book includes: - High resolution solid and liquid state NMR - Low resolution NMR - Solution State NMR - Magnetic Resonance Imaging - Electron Spin Resonance - Many applications taken from all of the chemical and related sciences

This book deals with the application of grazing angle x-ray and neutron scattering to the study of surface-induced critical phenomena. With the advent of even more advanced synchrotron radiation sources and new sophisticated instrumentation this novel technique is expected to experience a boom. The comprehensive and detailed presentation of theoretical and experimental aspects of the scattering of evanascent x-ray and neutron waves inside a solid makes this book particularly useful for tutorial courses. Particular emphasis is put on the use of this technique to extract microscopic information (correlation functions) from the real structure of a surface, from buried and magnetic interfaces and from surface roughness.

Recently there have been profound developments in the understanding and interpretation of liquids and soft matter centered on constituents with sho- range interactions. Ionic soft matter is a class of conventional condensed soft matter with prevailing contribution from electrostatics and, therefore, can be subject to possible long-range correlations among the components of the - terial and in many cases crucially affecting its physical properties. Among the most popular representatives of such a class of materials are natural and synthetic saline environments, like aqueous and non-aqueous electrolyte - lutions and molten salts as well as variety of polyelectrolytes and colloidal suspensions. Equally well known are biological systems of proteins. All these systems are examples of soft matter strongly in?uenced, if not dominated, by long-range forces. For more than half of century the classical theories by Debye and Hückel as well as by Derjaguin, Landau, Verwey and Owerbeek (DLVO) have been at the basis of theoretical physical chemistry and chemical engineering. The substantial progress in material science during last few decades as well as the advent of new instrumentation and computational techniques made it apparent that in many cases the classical theories break down. New types of interactions (e.g. hydrodynamic, entropic) have been discovered and a number of questions have arisen from theoretical and experimental studies. Many of these questions still do not have de?nite answers.

This series presents critical reviews of the present and future trends in polymer and biopolymer science including chemistry, physical chemistry, physics and materials science. It is addressed to all scientists at universities and in industry who wish to keep abreast of advances in the topics covered. Impact Factor Ranking: Always number one in Polymer Science. More information as well as the electronic version of the whole content available at: springerlink.com

This series presents critical reviews of the present and future trends in polymer and biopolymer science including chemistry, physical chemistry, physics and materials science. It is addressed to all scientists at universities and in industry who wish to keep abreast of advances in the topics covered. Impact Factor Ranking: Always number one in Polymer Science. More information as well as the electronic version of the whole content available at: www.springerlink.com

Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Research Workshop, Illmenau, Germany from 12 to 16 July 2003

Protein NMR for the Millennium is the third volume in a special thematic series devoted to the latest developments in protein NMR under the Biological Magnetic Resonance umbrella. This book is divided into three major sections dealing with significant recent advances in the study of large proteins in solution and solid state, structure refinement, and screening of bioactive ligands. Key Features: TROSY, Segmental isotope labeling of proteins, Hydrogen bond scalar couplings, Structure refinement based on residual dipolar couplings, Written by the world's foremost experts who have provided broad leadership in advancing the protein NMR field.